Assessments

Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC )

The Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) is charged with the responsibility of assessing the value of all properties in Ontario. The Province of Ontario sets the policies as it relates to assessment and MPAC administers them.

Assessed values are then provided to Municipalities, who then use these figures to determine your property taxes.

Residential property taxes are calculated using assessed value, the City's tax rate, the County of Lambton's tax rate and an Education tax rate set by the Province of Ontario annually.

In 2016, the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) updated the assessed value of every property in Ontario. All properties now have a legislated valuation date of January 1, 2016. These values will be used by the City of Sarnia to calculate property taxes for the 2017-2020 property tax years.

Appeals to the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation

Contact MPAC with any questions you may have about your assessment. MPAC can be reached at 1-866-296-6722 or online at MPAC.ca. The local office is located at 805 Christina Street N, Point Edward, Ontario N7V 1B6.

If your property is in the residential class or has a residential component, you must file a Request for Reconsideration with MPAC to have the value of your property reviewed before you can file an appeal with the Assessment Review Board (ARB).

Forms are available from MPAC.

There is no fee for filing a Request for Reconsideration.

In response to each RfR, MPAC has up to 180 days to complete its review and respond to the property owner. If you are not satisfied with MPAC’s decision on the Request for Reconsideration, you may file an appeal to the Assessment Review Board (ARB). This must be done within 90 days of receiving MPAC’s decision.

To avoid penalty and interest charges, taxes on a property must be paid in full as billed. The City must receive notification of a change in assessment from MPAC or the ARB before an adjustment can be made to your tax account. There may be a delay in the time an appeal is filed to when a decision is made.

Assessment Review Board (ARB)

The Assessment Review Board is an independent tribunal that hears assessment appeals. The ARB website provides information regarding the appeal process, schedule of filing fees, and the required forms.

Appeals to the Assessment Review Board

For residential and farm properties, an appeal can only be filed with the ARB after a Request for Reconsideration has been processed by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation.

All other property types may file a Request for Reconsideration with the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation or file a complaint directly to the Assessment Review Board. The deadline to file a complaint directly to the ARB is March 29th.